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Across the state, five children have died of flu-related illness this season. On Wednesday, Ontario County public health director Mary Beer confirmed the death of a child, and Naples schools superintendent Matt Frahm released a statement mourning the loss of an elementary school student. No other details were released.

The Monroe County Department of Public Health reported that through Jan. 28, three adults older than 50 have died from flu-related illness and 168 people have been hospitalized. The county has seen 806 laboratory-confirmed cases.

However, not all people with symptoms see a doctor, and doctors do not test all people with signs of the virus.

But more of the tests being done are coming back positive.

At Rochester General, 24 percent of lab tests for the week ending Feb. 4 confirmed presence of flu virus. That was compared to 12 percent for the week ending Dec. 31, Walsh said. The hospital had about 10 admissions a week for flu-related illness in January, and 29 the first week of February.

UR Medicine has seen a steady increase since the last two weeks of January in the percentage of flu tests that are positive.

The peak flu season can last about six weeks, so the virus still could be on the upswing. Most of the cases so far are influenza A, or the H3N2 strain, which is associated with more hospitalizations and takes more of a toll on the elderly than does influenza B.

Depending on the season, one strain can dominate. However, Walsh and Treanor said it's not unusual for the other strain to surge later in the season. Both strains are part of the vaccine.

Treanor said that overall, the season has been typical. "There's a lot of respiratory disease and it does have a significant impact."

For the 2015-2016 flu season, data through April 23 showed that Monroe County had 2,533 lab-confirmed cases, 492 hospitalizations (57 admissions to intensive care) and seven deaths. All the deaths were among people 50 and older.